U.S. patent number 5,695,057 [Application Number 08/617,381] was granted by the patent office on 1997-12-09 for thermo-formed packing element for flourescent tube.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Lawrence Paper Company. Invention is credited to Michael W. Sullivan.
United States Patent |
5,695,057 |
Sullivan |
December 9, 1997 |
Thermo-formed packing element for flourescent tube
Abstract
A unitary, thermo-formed synthetic resin packing element (10) is
provided which is adapted to fit over the ends of a pair of
fluorescent tubes (50, 52). The element (10) includes a pair of
elongated, juxtaposed, interconnected tubular members (16, 18) each
having a closed end (20, 22) and a series of axially extending,
deformable, concavo-convex ribs (34, 36). The central axes (46, 48)
of the tubular members (16, 18) are preferably non-parallel prior
to fitting of the tubular members (16, 18) over the ends of the
fluorescent tubes (50, 52); this assists in maintaining the element
(10) in place and increases the overall integrity of the final two
fluorescent tube package (66).
Inventors: |
Sullivan; Michael W. (Topeka,
KS) |
Assignee: |
Lawrence Paper Company
(Lawrence, KS)
|
Family
ID: |
24473439 |
Appl.
No.: |
08/617,381 |
Filed: |
March 18, 1996 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
206/418; 206/443;
D9/456 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D
85/42 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B65D
85/42 (20060101); B65D 085/42 () |
Field of
Search: |
;206/418,419,421,443,564,589,592 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Ackun; Jacob K.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Hovey, Williams, Timmons &
Collins
Claims
I claim:
1. A packing element for a pair of elongated fluorescent tubes and
comprising:
a resilient synthetic resin body presenting a pair of elongated,
juxtaposed, interconnected tubular members each having an entrance
opening and a rearward end, said members being adapted to fit over
and engage the end of a fluorescent tube,
each of said tubular members having a central axis and wherein the
axes of the tubular members are in a non-parallel orientation prior
to fitting of the tubular members over said fluorescent tube
ends.
2. The packing element of claim 1, said rearward ends being closed
whereby the members have a cup-like configuration.
3. The packing element of claim 1, wherein said axes are oriented
such that the axes are closer together at said rearward ends of
said tubular members, and are farther apart at said entrance
openings.
4. The packing element of claim 1, said body being integral.
5. The packing element of claim 1, each of said tubular members
having a series of circumferentially arranged, generally axially
extending, concavo-convex ribs along the lengths thereof.
6. The packing element of claim 5, at least certain of said ribs
being deformable when the corresponding tubular member is fitted
over and engages the end of a fluorescent tube.
7. The packing element of claim 1, including a transverse wall
adjacent said entrance openings and interconnecting said tubular
members, there being a concave wall segment joined to said
transverse wall at the area of closest adjacency of said tubular
members.
8. The packing element of claim 1, said body being formed of
polyvinyl chloride.
9. The packing element of claim 1, said body being thermoformed
from polyvinyl chloride sheet material having a thickness of up to
about 0.020 inches.
10. A packing element for a pair of elongated fluorescent tubes and
comprising:
a resilient synthetic resin body presenting a pair of elongated,
juxtaposed, interconnected cup-like members each having a tubular
sidewall, an entrance opening and a closed rearward end, said
members being adapted to fit over and frictionally engage the end
of a fluorescent tube,
each of said tubular sidewalls having a series of circumferentially
arranged, generally axially extending, concavo-convex ribs along
the lengths thereof,
at least certain of said ribs being deformable when the
corresponding member is fitted over and engages the end of a
fluorescent tube.
11. The packing element of claim 10, said body being integral.
12. The packing element of claim 10, including a transverse wall
adjacent said entrance openings and interconnecting said tubular
members, there being a concave wall segment joined to said
transverse wall at the area of closest adjacency of said tubular
members.
13. The packing element of claim 10, said body being formed of
polyvinyl chloride.
14. The packing element of claim 10, said body being thermoformed
from polyvinyl chloride sheet material having a thickness of up to
about 0.020 inches.
15. A fluorescent tube package comprising:
a pair of elongated fluorescent tubes oriented in side-by-side
relationship with each of the tubes presenting a pair of metallic
connection prongs at each end thereof; and
a pair of unitary synthetic resin packing element respectively
fitted over and frictionally engaging the adjacent ends of said
fluorescent tubes,
each of said packing elements having a body presenting a pair of
elongated, juxtaposed, interconnected tubular members each having
an entrance opening and a rearward end, said members fitting over
and engaging the end of a fluorescent tube,
each of said tubular members having a central axis and wherein the
axes of the tubular members are in a non-parallel orientation prior
to fitting of the tubular members over said fluorescent tube ends,
said axes being substantially parallel as fitted over and engaging
said fluorescent tube ends.
16. The package of claim 15, said rearward ends being closed
whereby the members have a cup-like configuration.
17. The package of claim 15, wherein said axes prior to said
fitting are oriented such that the axes are closer together at said
rearward ends of said tubular members, and are farther apart at
said entrance openings.
18. The package of claim 15, said body being integral.
19. The package of claim 15, each of said tubular members having a
series of circumferentially arranged, generally axially extending,
concavo-convex ribs along the lengths thereof.
20. The package of claim 19, at least certain of said ribs being
deformable when the corresponding tubular member is fitted over and
engages the end of a fluorescent tube.
21. The package of claim 15, including a transverse wall adjacent
said entrance openings and interconnecting said tubular members,
there being a concave wall segment joined to said transverse wall
at the area of closest adjacency of said tubular members.
22. The package of claim 15, said body being formed of polyvinyl
chloride.
23. The package of claim 15, said body being thermo-formed from
polyvinyl chloride sheet material having a thickness of up to about
0.020 inches.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is broadly concerned with synthetic resin
packing elements particularly designed for use with fluorescent
tubes in order to provide an economical, breakage-resistant means
of packaging pairs of such tubes for shipment and sale. More
particularly, the invention pertains to such packing elements, as
well as completed fluorescent tube packages, wherein each elements
is in the form of a resilient synthetic resin (e.g., polyvinyl
chloride) body presenting a pair of juxtaposed tubular members
which as manufactured have slightly non-parallel central axes and
which are deformed when applied to the ends of fluorescent tubes as
an aid in unitizing the final package. In preferred forms, each of
the tubular members is configured to present a series of axially
extending, concavo-convex deformable ribs along the lengths thereof
so that the inner, fluorescent tube-engaging surface of each
tubular member has a transversely undulating shape.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Elongated fluorescent tubes are extremely fragile and care must be
taken in order to package such tubes for safe transit, storage and
sale. In the past, it has been known to support fluorescent tubes
using inserts or dunnage elements formed of molded pulp or
paperboard. In addition, specialized tube dunnage elements of the
type described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,792,045 have been provided. These
supports are formed using synthetic resin sheet material and are
designed for machine dispensing during packing operations.
In recent years, fluorescent tubes have been sold as pairs and are
packaged using shrink wrap film and cardboard end supports. This
type of packaging has proved to be satisfactory in the case of
standard four foot tubes. However, there is a significant market
for longer fluorescent tubes (e.g., eight feet), and shrink wrap
packaging of these long tubes is not economically feasible owing to
the cost of the film wrap.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for improved fluorescent
tube packing elements which eliminate the need for shrink wrapping,
are low in cost, and provide the degree of protection against
breakage required by shippers and retailers.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes the problems outlined above and
provides a packing element for a pair of elongated fluorescent
tubes. Broadly speaking, the packing element of the invention is
designed to be fitted over the ends of a pair of adjacent
fluorescent tubes, and is in the form of a resilient, deformable
synthetic resin body which can be thermo-formed from starting sheet
stock. The synthetic resin body presents a pair of elongated,
juxtaposed, interconnected tubular members each having an entrance
opening and a rearward end, wherein each tubular members is adapted
to fit over and engage a fluorescent tube end. In preferred forms,
the body is formed so that the central axes of the tubular members
are in a non-parallel orientation prior to fitting of the tubular
members over the fluorescent tube ends. This non-parallel
orientation has been found to rigidify and unitize the resultant
fluorescent tube package and give greater resistance to
breakage.
In further preferred forms, each of the tubular members has a
closed rearmost end to present a cup-like configuration. Moreover,
the tubular sidewalls are configured to present a series of
circumferentially arranged, generally axially extending,
concavo-convex ribs along the lengths thereof. At least certain of
these ribs are deformable when tubular members are fitted over a
fluorescent tube end to enhance the integrity of the final
fluorescent package.
The packing elements of the invention can be thermo-formed from
sheet stock using a variety of synthetic resin materials such as
polyvinyl chloride or polyester. In practice, however, polyvinyl
chloride sheets have a nominal thickness of up to about 0.02 inches
is preferred, with 0.015 inch thickness PVC material being most
preferred.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a packaging element in accordance
with the invention, illustrating the entrance openings of the
cup-like tube-receiving sockets;
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the FIG. 1 packaging element,
depicting the closed rearward ends of the cup-like sockets;
FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the packaging element
illustrated in FIGS. 1-2;
FIG. 4 is a plan view of the packaging element;
FIG. 5 is an end view of the packaging element;
FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional view of the preferred packaging
element illustrating the undulating configuration of the tubular
sidewalls of the sockets and the preferred non-parallel orientation
of the central axes of the sockets;
FIG. 7 is a sectional view similar to that of FIG. 6 but depicting
the packaging element properly affixed over the ends of a pair of
fluorescent tubes; and
FIG. 8 is a fragmentary sectional view illustrating a complete
fluorescent tube package in accordance with the invention including
a pair of fluorescent tubes and a packing element in accordance
with the invention installed over each adjacent pair of tube
ends.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Turning now to the drawings and particularly FIGS. 1-5, it will be
seen that a packing element 10 in accordance with the invention is
in the form of an integral, thermo-formed, synthetic resin body 12
preferably formed from 0.015 inch PVC sheet stock. The body 12
includes an upper wall section 14 as well as a pair of depending,
elongated, juxtaposed tubular members 16, 18 having closed ends 20,
22. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 4, it will be observed that the walls
16, 18 also present a pair of side-by-side entrance openings 24, 26
leading to the interior of the members 16, 18.
In more detail, the upper wall section 14 includes a substantially
planar primary wall 28 as well as a depending, circumscribing
external flange 30. It will be noted that the wall 28 is transverse
to the longitudinal axis of the members 16, 18, and that a short,
concave wall segment 32 is joined to the wall 28 at the area of
closest adjacency of the members 16, 18. Each of the members 16, 18
is configured to present a series of circumferentially arranged,
axially extending, elongated concavo-convex ribs 34, 36 such that
each tubular member presents a transverse, undulating, fluorescent
tube-engaging internal surface. The end caps 20, 22 each include a
transverse annular wall 38, 40 as well as a short, closed-ended
prong-receiving extension 42, 44.
It will thus be seen that the tubular members 16, 18, and their
corresponding ends 20, 22 cooperatively define a pair of cup-like
members each having a tubular sidewall, an entrance opening and a
closed rearward end.
In preferred forms, the body 10 is manufactured so that the central
axes 46, 48 of the tubular members 16, 18 are in a non-parallel
orientation. As best illustrated in FIG. 5, the axes 46, 48 have a
small included angle therebetween of up to about 10.degree., more
preferably up to about 5.degree., and most preferably about
2.degree.. It will moreover be seen that the axes 46, 48 are
oriented such that they are closer together at the closed ends 20,
22, as compared with their relative spacing at the entrance
openings 24, 26.
FIGS. 7 illustrates the configuration of a packing element 10 after
application to the ends of a pair of fluorescent tubes 50, 52. As
seen, each of the tubes 50, 52 includes a metallic end cap 54, 56
as well as a pair of connection prongs 58, 60. As the tubular
members 16, 18 are fitted onto the ends of the tubes 50, 52, the
body 10 is deformed so that the central axes 46, 48 are
substantially parallel with each other. In addition, the
force-fitting of the members 16, 18 onto the fluorescent tubes
causes at least certain of the ribs 34, 36 to deform and bulge
outwardly as shown at 62, 64. This insures that the packing element
10 is positively secured in place, and moreover strengthens the
resultant package.
FIG. 8 depicts a completed fluorescent tube package 66 made up of a
pair of fluorescent tubes 50, 52 with a pair of packing elements 10
mounted on the opposed ends of the adjacent fluorescent tubes.
* * * * *